The use of inkjet printing systems in offices and homes has grown dramatically in recent years. The growth can be attributed to drastic reductions in cost of inkjet printers and substantial improvements in print resolution and overall print quality. While the print quality has drastically improved, research and development efforts continue toward aligning the permanence of inkjet images with other printing and photographic techniques. A continued demand in inkjet printing has resulted in the need to produce images of high quality, high permanence, and high durability, while maintaining cost effectiveness.
Specifically, when inks of different colors are printed next to each other on bond paper, copier paper, and other media, bleeding could result. Bleeding occurs as colors mix both on the surface of the paper being printed on and in the paper.
In inkjet printing, the inkjet image is formed on a print medium when a precise pattern of dots is ejected from a drop-generating device known as the printhead. The typical inkjet printhead has an array of precisely formed nozzles located on a nozzle plate and attached to an inkjet printhead array. The inkjet printhead array incorporates an array of firing chambers that receive and selectively eject liquid ink, which includes pigments and/or dyes dissolved and/or dispersed in a liquid vehicle, through fluid communication with one or more ink reservoirs. Traditionally, pigment loads of approximately 4 to 5% are used in order to achieve desired performance. Lower loads generally result in enhanced reliability and lower ink costs, but generally are also accompanied by loses in performance with regard to one or more attributes.